Team GB earned six more medals, including a first ever gold in sport climbing as the Paris 2024 Olympics approaches its conclusion.
There were medals across the cycling and running tracks, as well as a first Olympic medal for Katarina Johnson-Thompson.
Sport Climbing
Toby Roberts earned Team GB’s maiden sport climbing medal, triumphing to take gold in the men’s combined. He scored 155.2 to win, recording 63.1 in the boulder and 92.1 in the lead.
Roberts, who qualified second, was third following the boulder event, but pulled off a better lead effort than Japanese climber Sorato Anraku to clinch Team GB’s 14th gold of the Games.
“I’ve been working towards this for like 10 years,” Roberts said. “Me and my dad, we created a plan to get to this stage. It’s been a journey, a lot of competitions, ups and downs, but to finally be on this stage, competing in front of this crowd and to win the gold medal is a dream come true.
“Once climbing got introduced into the Tokyo Olympics [he made the plan to compete]. So when I was around 12, but I’ve been climbing since I was seven.”
Hamish McArthur finished fifth, scoring 53.9 in the boulder and 72.0 in the lead to finish on 125.9.
Athletics
Katarina Johnson-Thompson won her first Olympic medal with a brilliant silver in the women’s heptathlon.
Solid efforts from the two-time world champion in the long jump and javelin were backed up by a personal best in the 800m as she scored 6844 points in total.
Johnson-Thompson said: “I’m just so relieved, I’m so happy, so so happy to add an Olympic medal to my collection.
“I really don’t know what to say at the minute, I’m so overwhelmed.”
Jade O’Dowda finished tenth with 6280.
Both the men’s and women’s 4x100m relay teams medalled in a frenetic penultimate evening of athletics.
The women’s team of Dina Asher-Smith, Imani-Lara Lansiquot, Amy Hunt and Daryll Neita ran 41.85 to secure a superb silver medal.
Asher-Smith said: “We’re all so proud and so happy. We’ve worked so hard for this.”
The men’s team of Jeremiah Azu, Louie Hinchliffe, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and Zarnel Hughes then secured bronze in a time of 37.61.
Amber Anning posted a new a national record in the women’s 400m final as she ran 49.29 to finish fifth.
Earlier in the day, Max Burgin qualified for the men’s 800m final on Saturday with a personal best of 1:43.50.
Both the men’s and the women’s 4x400m team qualified for their respective finals on Saturday in second place.
Matthew Hudson-Smith, Charlie Dobson, Sam Reardon and Toby Harries progressed to the final in 2:58.88, while Lina Nielsen, Jodie Williams, Hannah Kelly and Yemi Mary John ran in 3:24.72 to book a place in the final.
Eilish McColgan and Megan Keith finished 15th and 23rd respectively in the women’s 10,000m.
Track Cycling
Elinor Barker and Neah Evans produced a hard-fought silver in the women’s madison, securing 31 sprint points.
A last lap sprint win secured ten vital points to pip the Dutch, who earned a bronze, while Italy won gold.
It was the first of two track cycling medals on Friday as Jack Carlin won a brilliant individual men’s sprint bronze in a deciding race against Dutchman Jeffrey Hoogland.
Team GB now have seven track cycling medals in this Olympics, with four events to come over the last two days.
In the women’s individual sprint, Emma Finucane and Sophie Capewell cruised into the last 16.
Artistic Swimming
Team GB are well-placed after the first of the two women’s artistic swimming disciplines, sitting less than a point off a medal in fourth.
Isabelle Thorpe and Kate Shortman, competing in their second Olympics, scored 264.0282 in their technical routine, which will be combined with tomorrow’s free routine to determine the medals.
The pair have World Championship medals in both disciplines and are targeting their first Olympic medal.
Around the Games
Defending Olympic champion Joe Choong qualified for tomorrow’s final as he finished eighth in his semi-final. Teammate Charlie Brown finished tenth and did not qualify.
Yasmin Harper placed fifth in the women’s 3m springboard final with 305.10, while Grace Reid was 10th with 275.85.
Noah Williams and Kyle Kothari both qualified for the men’s 10m platform semi-final on Saturday in eighth and ninth respectively.
Hector Pardoe finished sixth in the men’s 10km open water swim in 1:51:50.8, while Toby Robinson was 14th in 1:56:43.0.
Georgia Hall and Charley Hull both shot under par to move to three over and five over respectively in the women’s golf.
With thanks to Team GB
